Teat-cup.



KLEIN & D. BROWN THAT GUP. APPLI-TIQN FILED AUG. 2, 190.9.

Patented Apr. 5, 1910.

wm/rana DANIEL KLEIN AND DAVID isnownjor sr'oKnNE, WASHINGTON.

friser-cur.

954,115.0. speeiceuuaf Lettersratent.

Patented Apr. 5, 1910..

Application led August 2, 1909. Serial No. 510,785.

To all wiomit may concern:

Belitflniown that we, DANIEL KLEIN and .DA-VIDBROWN, citizens of the United- States,A

residiir^at Spokane, in the county'o'f Spokane, `tate of Washington, have invented a neuT and' useful Teat-Cup,` of which the following isa specification. l

This invention has reference to improve- I inent's inteat cups, that is, a cup adapted to the cup is made collapsible on two sides so that .when placed in position and the alter- 4nate Vacuum and atmospheric pressure.;q is

exerted, Athe action of the vacuum or reduced pressure will be to,collapse -the cup on the two sides andA press against the teat 11i a manner similar to the action of hand-inilk-- in I 't 4is thev object ofthe present invention to' prouide a teat cu which will facilitate thelow of milk an will also prevent any congestionk of the teat as is liable to happen y when cows are milked by milking machines and tlic cow is for any reason disposed to hold up .her milk. -By the structureof the present'yinvention dangerof congestion is entirely elimina-ted While the flow of milk is materially increased by reason of the pressure exerted on both sides of the teat.

It is customary to maketeat cups of rubber, but the action of the inillr is such' as to ultimately destroy the elasticity of .the rubber, and the present invention includes means for rendering the elasticity of the teat cup independent of theelastic nature of the rubber. v

' `The invention will be best 'understood from a consideration of the following detail description taken in connection with the 'accompaigiying drawings :torming a part of this specilication, in Whiclidrawings Figure -"1 is a central longitudinal section through a .teat cup embodying the invention. Fig. 2 is a cross section on the line A-B .of Fig. l. Fig, viis a section through the teat cup at right angles tothe section of Fig. l. Fig. 4

. is a section on the line C-D of Fig. 3. Fig.

J5 is a longitudinal section of a portion of a teat cup showing a somewhat different oo nstruction than that of Figs. l'and. 3. Fig. 6 is across section of the teatcup shown in Fig. 5 and also illustrative of the action of the vacuum upon said teat cup.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a cup l which. in practice is of suoli size and shape as to conform to the teat of a-.ooW.

The upper or open end 2 of tlie cup is shaped' to snugly embrace the root of the teat'wliile the outer or discharge end of the cupindicated at 8 is formed for the escape of the milk and to receive a suitable conduit coniing .from the pulsator, which latter instrunient may be the saine as is commonly used in milking machines and therefore is not illustrated in the drawings. The body 1 is made generally of rubber of the elastic type 7o and on opposite sides of the cup tli'riibber body houses longitudinal stiiiz'ening memlbers'.

Any suitable material may be used .for

the stiening members, but in practice it is foundthat canvas answers the purpose since' it is both stiif and light. These canvas stiii v ening members are embeddedv in the rubber body and extend from the top or open end 2 to but not 'through' the-'discharge end 3, 80 which, from the l'ower end of the stitleni'ng members continues to the extreme end in the form of the pure rubber of the bodV portion.

The stitlening members are joined nearthe lower en'd'of the cup by a circumferential' continuation 5 wliicli,may b e inv one piece with the lower ends ofthe stitl'ening nieni bers so that the collapsible sections indicated at 6`do not extend downflo the discharge end 3 buttern'iinate a short distance there'- 96, i

above. i

If with such ay cup .applied to the teat ofv a cow milking be'attempted with an ordinary pulsa-tor, then the collapsible sections .6 will be moved by `air pressure one toward Ithe other until they assume a position somewhat suclras indicated inldotted lines in Fig. 2 thus bringing pressure to bear upon the test of the cow from opposite sides very similar to the vaction of the hand of an operator in the process of hand milking.. It happeushowever, that rubber is more or less affected by milk and in a comparatively sliort time loses its natural elasticity and will no longer spring back to normal posis 'tion when relievedfrom the` action of at-vr s l inospheric pressure on one side only. To

overcome this trouble is one of the featuresv of the present vinvention f fpr this f p'ur- .pose there is .introducedtintfthe collapsible 11i) port'ons o oI` the teat cup spring strands 't' extending from the upper' end 2 to the lower end l). These strands are embedded in the rubber of the body of the cup and also enter the reinforcement 5 about the lower end of the cup. The strands may be made of spring steel. or whale bone, or any other elastic material which will answer the purpose. The strands 7 being held in the stijf.- ening material at the lower end of the cup vary in elasticity toward the upper end of the cup where they yield most readily and consequently the upper end of the cup adjacent to the base of the teat will first collapse under the action of the pulsator and this collapsing of the side walls of the cup is progressive toward the discharge end of the cup thus very accurately simulating the action of the hand in hand milking and resulting in an increased flow of milk without the least danger of causing congestion of the teat or any other injury to the animal.

In Figs. l and 2 the elastic strands 7 are indicated as in the form of wires, but it will be understood that flat bands may also be used for the same purpose. Such bands may run longitudinally of the cup the same as the wires 7, or they may run transversely of the cup in which case each band Will include not more than and usually less than one half the circumference of the cup at the point where the band is applied. Such bands are indicated at 8 in Fig. 5 where7 in connection with the showing of Fig. 6 it will be seen that the bands traverse the reinforcingmembersl 4 and enter for a distance into the-collapsible, portions (i of the cup, but the contiguous ends of the bands are not brought into direct engagement but are separated a short distance, and by making these bands thin enough to be quite elastic the collapA sibility of the sections 6 will be similar to that of the' structure of Figs. 1 and 3, while the gradations of flexibility may readily be accomplished by making thebands at th(` upper end of the cup more flexible than those at the lower end so that. the upper end' of the cup will collapse lirst and this col lapsing wlll progress downward as the-pressure within the cup is decreased by the action of the pulsator.

The invention is not limited to the exact arrangement of springs shown and de- Iscribed since such arrangement of the springs and the number of the latter may be variously lnodilicd SO long as the salient features of the invention are retained.

lt will be seen from the showing of Figs. l to -l-y that the spring menibers there shown, whether consisting of wires or strips, extend longitudinally through the collapsible porl tions without connection to the stitfening; members except at the lower end, and these elastic members incorporated in the rubber wall, serve to impart elasticity to the eollapsible portions even after the inherentl elasticity of the rubber has been lost.

In the structure shown in Figs. `5 and 6 the elastic members traverse the reinforcing members and extend for a distance on each side thereof into vthe colla sibleportion of the body of the cup, and t ese elastic members are either made up of a number of Sepa rated pieces7 or may be made in one continuous piece on each side of the cup traversing 7 5 the stiffening member there located and eX- ".tending from each edge thereof for a distance into the collapsible members of the gVhat is claimed is:

l. A teat cup havin astiening reinforce on opposite sides an elastic members embedded in the walls of the cup between the reinforcing members.

2. A teat cup having readily yieldable teat compressing areas with the remaining portion of the wall of the cup'less yieldable, and elastic members embedded in the more yieldable areas.

3. A teat cup the wall of which has portions of variable flexibility, the more readily yieldable portions havingelastic members embedded therein.

4. A. rubber teat cup having a reinforce embedded in the wall thereof on opposite sides of said wall, the reinforce being of less area than the Wall of the cup, and elastic members embedded in the wall of the cup betweenthe reinforcing members. K

5. A teat cup having relatively non-compressible areas and more readily compressible areas. the latter including elastic menibers of different characters.

(3. A teat cup of elastic material with a circumferential reinforce near the discharge end and oppositely disposed reinforcing members extending from said circumferential reinforoe toward the other end of the body of the teat cup, and elastic members embedded in the portions of the body of the. l teat cup between the longitudinal rfinforc l ingmembers.'

T. A teat cup having a body portion with areas of different degrees of flexibility, the more readily yieldable areas having elastic members embedded therein.

S. A teat cup provided with a stifi'ening reinforce and areas of greater flexibility 'than the reinforced areas and elastic menibers embedded in the reinforce and extend 120 ingl into the more readily yieldable arcas.

[n testimony that we claim the foregoing as our own, we have hereto affixed our natures in the presence of two witnesses.

DANIEL KLETN. DAVID BROWN.

' lVitnesses: i A. C. vVaLiL L K. E. DANS. 

